NFL Handicapping Articles

NFL Basic Strategy Teasers: Best Betting Options for Week 12
by George Monroy - 11/24/2015

Week 12 of the NFL season is filled with basic strategy teaser action. And after last Sunday's games went a perfect 3-0, now might be the time to jump on board and use the power of the bet. A basic strategy teaser is a two-team, six-point teaser that uses the power of NFL key numbers, which are the most common margins of victory, to move certain spreads around the three- and seven-point mark. This week's action has five NFL games that qualify with all underdogs being moved up past seven points. Let's take a closer look at the games and figure out the best way to wager on each one.

NFL Football Predictions: Week 12 Opening Line Report and Picks
by Alan Matthews - 11/23/2015

Maybe the race for NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year isn't quite over yet. Pretty much everyone has handed that award to Rams running back Todd Gurley. And I'd still consider him the favorite, but Gurley has slowed down after four straight games with at least 128 yards rushing. He hasn't topped 89 in the past three games, all of which have been Rams losses to see their wild-card chances all but disappear.

NFL Odds and Betting Week 11: Line Movements & Last-Minute News
by Alan Matthews - 11/20/2015

There are of course 32 teams in the NFL. Do you realize there are only 11 with winning records entering Week 11? That's the fewest number of winning teams this late in the season in 25 years. Two divisions, the AFC South and NFC East, don't have any clubs in that category. The 2-7 Dallas Cowboys are still in the NFC East race, and the 4-6 Jacksonville Jaguars (after Thursday's win over the Titans) could be tied for first in the AFC South by Sunday evening.

NFL Betting and Wagering Advice: Biggest Mismatches Week 11
by Victor Ryan - 11/20/2015

The ability of a team to exploit a mismatch goes a long way in determining the outcome of NFL games. Each week, there are certain teams that hold a significant statistical advantage over its opponent in a certain area. Coaches spend hours game-planning to capitalize on such a scenario, and as a handicapper it's your duty to determine what potential impact such mismatches will have on the end result.

NFL Props Odds with Expert Betting Picks and Predictions
by Dave Schwab - 11/20/2015

Injuries are a big part of the picture in the NFL when it comes to handicapping the games, especially at the quarterback position. This Sunday the Denver Broncos will go on the road against the Chicago Bears, and backup quarterback Brock Osweiler will be getting the start for an injured Peyton Manning.

NFL Expert Picks Against the Spread: Green Bay Packers at Minnesota Vikings Odds
by Alan Matthews - 11/19/2015

Not surprised that the Minnesota Vikings are looking like a playoff team, but I gave them about a nil chance of winning the NFC North Division as long as Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers was healthy. Yet here we are in Week 11 and the Vikings (7-2), winners of five straight, have a one-game lead over the Packers (6-3), who have shockingly lost three in a row. It's their first three-game skid with a healthy Rodgers since 2008.

NFL Betting Advice: Handicapping the Denver Broncos Sans Manning
by Trevor Whenham - 11/19/2015

We are heading into some unfamiliar territory on Sunday. Not only have we not seen Peyton Manning benched at a time that he could at least theoretically play, but we rarely see this happen to an elite quarterback of any kind. But here we are, one of the best quarterbacks of all time being sat down in favor of… Brock freaking Osweiler. Who would have ever guessed? Strange world we live in. The biggest question for us here, of course, is what this means for Denver from a betting perspective.

NFL Basic Strategy Teasers: Best Betting Options for Week 11
by George Monroy - 11/19/2015

This week's basic strategy teaser games are a little tricky. We have an undefeated Carolina team, which might be due for a loss sometime soon, playing a matchup they could easily overlook heading into last seven games of the season. We also have a Peyton Manning-less Denver Broncos team heading into Chicago to play a suddenly-impressive Bears squad that has won two straight games. Predicting these matchups might be tougher than it seems.

NFL Expert Picks Against the Spread: Tennessee Titans at Jacksonville Jaguars Odds
by Alan Matthews - 11/18/2015

Every NFL team plays on Thursday night once, so remember that. But when I saw the 2015 Thursday night schedule released and Titans-Jaguars was on it, I cringed like probably the rest of you did. Perhaps the NFL's thinking is to simply pair those two lousy franchises together and get it out of the way instead of each getting pounded by a good team in the Thursday night spotlight.

2015 NBA Betting Trends: Bad Teams with Good ATS Records
by George Monroy - 11/17/2015

The NBA season is still in its infancy, and putting too much stock in the current storylines holding court over the league would be premature at best. Yes, talking about Golden State going 72-10 is fun, but the reality of the situation is that we are barely 10 games into the basketball year, and one hot start doesn't mean much over the course of a long marathon of a season. There are still a lot of games to be played, and the bad teams can suddenly become good and the good ones bad.

NFL Handicapping: Minnesota Vikings League's Best Against the Spread
by George Monroy - 11/17/2015

The 7-2 Minnesota Vikings are in the middle of the most impressive run in the entire NFL this season, and we've hardly heard a word about it. The sports media can keep on talking about the New England Patriots and Green Bay Packers, but I'll take the ATS juggernaut Vikings any day. Minnesota has covered eight straight games since dropping its Week 1 matchup to the San Francisco 49ers as a 2.5-point favorite, and the team may just win the NFC North if the last half of the season is anything like the first.

NFL Football Predictions: Week 11 Opening Line Report and Picks
by Alan Matthews - 11/16/2015

What an absolutely crazy Sunday of NFL action we saw in Week 10. Detroit winning a road game against Green Bay for the first time since 1991? Yeah, didn't see that coming. Chicago going to St. Louis and pounding the Rams? Huh. Kansas City dominating the Broncos in Denver -- with Peyton Manning getting pulled from the same game where he set the NFL career passing yardage record? Shocker.

NFL Betting and Wagering Advice: Biggest Mismatches Week 10
by Victor Ryan - 11/13/2015

When an NFL game features a decided mismatch, it's time to sit up and take notice. It's an ideal situation when one team's strength corresponds with the biggest weakness of its opponent. Coaches are constantly searching for ways to exploit such scenarios when they present themselves. Handicappers should too.

NFL Props Odds with Expert Betting Picks and Predictions
by Dave Schwab - 11/13/2015

Week 10 in the NFL marks the official start of the second half of the 2015 NFL regular season, with all 32 teams having at least eight of 16 games under their belt. To get things started the right way, Bovada has released its special prop bets for a few of the top NFL storylines trending right now. After going through this week's list of both player and team props, here are my "best bet" picks for a few of these unique betting opportunities.

NFL Expert Picks Against the Spread: Arizona Cardinals at Seattle Seahawks Predictions
by Alan Matthews - 11/12/2015

I haven't touched on too many Sunday night games yet this season, but clearly this week's NBC nationally-televised matchup between Arizona and Seattle is the week's most important game. Some might argue Patriots at Giants, but interconference games are simply not that vital when you factor in the playoff tiebreaker.

NFL Expert Picks Against the Spread: Buffalo Bills at New York Jets Odds
by Alan Matthews - 11/11/2015

Pretty much every Thursday night NFL game this season has been ugly to watch, and maybe this Thursday's will too. That quick turnaround simply leads to sloppy football. But the matchup between the Bills and Jets should be pretty fun, at least leading up, because it's Buffalo coach Rex Ryan's return to the Big Apple for the first time since the Jets fired the blustery Ryan following last season.

NFL Expert Handicapping Picks: ATS Value Teams Down the Stretch
by George Monroy - 11/11/2015

Is the NFL really in the second half of the season already? For those bettors who are winning, the season is racing toward the finish line. And for those who are losing, the football year has probably been a slow, painful grind. However, there is no need to worry, because the NFL has plenty of games left to be played before January that will provide bettors ample opportunity to continue winning or to take a bankroll from the red into the black.

NFL Basic Strategy Teasers: Best Betting Options for Week 10
by George Monroy - 11/10/2015

Basic strategy teasers went 2-1 last week, but the one loss (Tampa Bay not covering against New York) was something that many bettors could see coming a mile away. We advised players to stay away from that matchup in the first place. Basic strategy teasers are two-team, six-point parlays that only use games where the favorite is giving away 7.5 to 8.5 points so we can tease it down by six and below the NFL key number of three (the most common margin of victory). And another qualifying situation is when the underdogs are receiving 1.5 to 2.5 points so we can tease those lines up past the key number of seven (the second most common margin of victory).

NFL Football Predictions: Week 10 Opening Line Report and Picks
by Alan Matthews - 11/9/2015

History has shown us that you can go ahead and put the New England Patriots, Cincinnati Bengals and Carolina Panthers in the playoffs. All three won easily in Week 9 to improve to 8-0, the first time in league history there have been three unbeaten teams this late in the season. That the Pats handled the Redskins and the Bengals did the same to the Browns wasn't a surprise, but the Panthers throttling Green Bay for most of that game was.

NFL Odds and Betting Week 9: Line Movements & Last-Minute News
by Alan Matthews - 11/6/2015

This week is officially the halfway point of the NFL season as each team will have played eight regular-season games by the end of Week 9. And if the team you back still has a losing record after its eighth game, it's not over in terms of the playoffs yet. Since 2000, 35 teams have reached the halfway point of their season with a .500 or below winning percentage and reached to the playoffs, including at least one in each season.